A year's worth of blogs prove 2020 wasn't all ... 2020

With everything that went on, we wouldn't blame people if they suggest that we all collectively agree to forget that 2020 happened.

It's understandable and even a little tempting, so we went looking for some evidence that this year wasn't completely ... well, 2020. And despite the current public health situation, lack of toilet paper, and a contentious election, when we looked back we found quite a busy year chronicled on the ADOT blog. So, below is just a sampling of the funny, weird, serious and interesting tidbits we were able to share in the past 12 months.

• January: Back before things got crazy, we told you about how a recent survey showed that motorist loved our newly formed Incident Response Unit. Comments from drivers included “outstanding,” “a blessing,” “above and beyond” and “fantastic.” Not too bad a way to start off the year! We also took the opportunity to ponder some deep questions, such as "why?" and "are we there yet?"
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  February: Just to prove that 2020 wasn't all bad, we brought you this heartwarming tale about an IRU member who was able to save a scared kitten which had gotten itself into a precarious spot. And if you needed more heartwarming news, one of our ADOT team members adopted the kitten and gave us an update on how much (and adorably) she was growing. Plus, we couldn't let the month pass without looking back at another time when the going got rough and people banded together, so we shared the tale (and song!) of the Hattie B.
• March: Of course it hasn't all been fun, games and warm memories. This year we shared the passing of IRU member Frank Dorizio, who was struck by a car while setting up traffic control on I-10 for crews filling potholes. His untimely passing led to a special detail to enforce the state's "Move Over" law later that month. Some good news did come out of March with a special women-only session of ADOT's Construction Academy, which helps prepare women to transition into construction careers. 
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  April: By April we all knew this year would be different and we decided to help however we could. That's why we created ADOT Kids, a series of short videos and activities meant to help kids learn about construction while still having fun at home. In that first month we had snow plows, a chalk art contest, and fun backgrounds for all those Zoom meetings. It was during April that we allowed food trucks at certain rest areas to help keep truckers fueled as they transported essential goods across the state. We also patted ourselves on the back a bit for reaching an important Facebook milestone.
• May: It just wouldn't be May if we didn't have our annual Safety Message Contest. We had some outstanding entries (as always!) and it was hard to narrowing it down to just 12 for you to vote on. Speaking of our overhead sign boards, we also used them to tell the graduating class of 2020 that we wished them the best under the circumstances. We also announced the winners of another contest in May by releasing some images from photographers that more than earned a coveted spot in Arizona Highways.
• June: As we moved into summer, it was all in anticipation of the upcoming monsoon season ... that never really arrived. Still, a group of musically inclined ADOT employees got together to produce a little ditty about how to survive getting caught in a dust storm, and then asked all of you for help naming their hit song! While suggestions were coming in, we were also putting the final touches on our new dust detection and alert system along I-10 between Phoenix and Tucson.
  
  It was during this month too that we shared a deep cut of music trivia about that certain corner the Eagles were always singing about.
• July: By the midpoint in the year we were feeling a bit nostalgic, which is why we shared this bit of movie magic that starred the Mule Pass Tunnel in the early 1980s – even if the film itself was a clunker. Not stopping at tunnels, we also looked back at bridges, specifically the impressive engineering that went into the bridges on the Beeline Highway. Finally, we had a fun look back at how road grading happened in the good old days.
• August: Since late 2018, crews had been working on new interchanges along I-17 at Pinnacle Peak and Happy Valley roads, including the removal of the old roundabouts. As those were being taken out, we looked back on when they were originally put in. The month also gave us the chance to celebrate 30 years of the Deck Park Tunnel completing I-10, both for Phoenix and highway at large. 
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  September: We had a strange sighting this month when we spotted a section of US 60 dedicated to Sasquatch, and found the love story behind an Adopt a Highway volunteer. We also took the opportunity to tell you all a little bit about Nothing.
• October: Just in time for Halloween, we asked what frightens you in a series of new PSAs highlighting the dangers of distracted driving. And since we took away the roundabouts at I-17 and Happy Valley, we previewed what was going to replace them – Arizona's first diverging diamond interchange. Finally, Arizona Highways received some well-deserved recognition for their fabulous Instagram account.
• November: In the spirit of Thanksgiving, we decided to serve up some highway-inspired recipes, starting with a couple of layered dips. Then to coordinate with the fall colors, we talked about a similarly chromatic chapter in state transportation history. Finally we took a long trip down memory lane to relive the glory days of US 80, the mother of Arizona highways.
• December: Finally, we closed out 2020 by celebrating the holidays in our own transportation-themed way. We found some marvelous photos of Arizona in wintertime, and finally celebrated one full year of the South Mountain Freeway. 

As you can see, despite everything, it was still a busy year. Though we, like you, still hope that this new one will be a little less ... 2020.